Kyiv (Kiev), the capital
of Ukraine, is in fact the Mother City of
the Russian peoples. During the Soviet period Ukrainians were never
happy
to play third fiddle to Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Ukraine is a vast country, much
of it is flat arable land, although
it becomes more mountainous in the west. The mighty River Dniepr cuts a
swathe
right through the centre of the country with Kyiv in the centre and
Odesa
(Odessa) near its mouth.

The bizarre almost-island of
the Crimea is almost a country within a
country, although in 2014 it was annexed into Russia the areas
political status is still in dispute.